Receiving "error" message with Wii original games

Hi

I have a Wii from launch. it is softmodded and i am running ver 4.1u. Until yesterday my son had no problem running any of his games, whether it was an ISO or original cd. Since this morning, any cd i put (ISO or Original Wii cd), i get to see the title show up on the wii home screen but when i try to load the game i get the error message saying i need to eject and consult the manual. Sometimes the games load the intro screen and then this message comes up. I did some research and found that often it is the lazer lens in the wii that gets dirty or doesnt work anymore. I also noticed that it takes some more time to load the cd than usual.

Does anyone have any suggestions? I know i can purchase the replacement lazer lens from ebay but i just want to make sure i am going in the right direction before i start.
Thanks for any suggestion.

Hi
Thanks for the reply. I havent been on the scene for awhile so can you please guide me to where i should start reading to do my loads with USB?
I am presently using modmii 4.4.0 (i think). I usually burn my games on cd so my son can play them. But now he cant event play the original ones.